The invention relates to a method for producing a semiconductor component with a multichip module and a silicon carrier substrate.
In the assembly of complex electronic systems with a plurality of semiconductor chips, problems related to packaging technology and connection technology increasingly emerge when reducing the spacing distances between chip connections. The conventional configuration, in which the semiconductor chips are housed individually, provided with connections and then mounted individually on a printed circuit board, is not optimal in many cases due to the relatively high space requirement and due to the wiring required between the individual chips.
What is increasingly common, therefore, is a system configuration in the form of multichip modules, in which a substrate with high-density multilayer wiring, on which the chips are fitted, serves as an intermediate carrier substrate for a joint integration of a plurality of semiconductor chips in a next higher architectural level of the system configuration. Suitable materials for the intermediate carrier substrate nowadays include, in addition to conventional plastic, principally ceramic, metal and silicon. Silicon and ceramic are problematic, however, when combined with the space-saving connection technology BGA (ball grid array), since the holes required for the through-contacting from the multilayer wiring on the mounting side to the already provided solder balls on the underside can be produced only with difficulty for a ceramic substrate, for example.
It is accordingly an object of the invention to provide a method for producing a semiconductor component having a multichip module, which overcomes the above-mentioned disadvantages of the heretofore-known methods of this general type and which provides a reliable electrical connection between the multilayer wiring and the solder balls.
With the foregoing and other objects in view there is provided, in accordance with the invention, a method for producing a semiconductor component having a multichip module, the method including the steps of:
providing a silicon carrier substrate having cavities formed therein;
applying an insulating layer at least to side walls of the cavities;
applying a multilayer wiring to a mounting side of the silicon carrier substrate; and
applying solder balls or solder agglomerations to a bottom side of the silicon carrier substrate such that the solder balls directly contact the multilayer wiring via the cavities, the solder balls providing soldering contacts for electrically connecting a multichip module to a mounting rack.
In other words, the object of the invention is achieved by the steps of:
a) applying the insulation layer to the silicon carrier substrate,
b) applying the multilayer wiring to the silicon carrier substrate, and
c) applying the solder balls.
According to another mode of the invention, at least one semiconductor chip is provided on the multilayer wiring before or after the step of applying the solder balls, and the at least one semiconductor chip is electrically connected to the multilayer wiring.
According to yet another mode of the invention, a topmost conductor track plane of the multilayer wiring is electrically connected to at least one semiconductor chip.
The fact that the structured silicon carrier substrate, which has already been provided with cavities, is provided with the insulation layer before it is connected to the multilayer wiring allows significantly simpler methods to be used for applying the insulation layer. It is possible to apply at least one semiconductor chip to the multilayer wiring either before or after step c) and to electrically connect this chip to the multilayer wiring.
In one advantageous mode of the invention, the application of the insulation layer includes the following steps:
applying a layer which is resistant to silicon etching at least to that side of the silicon carrier substrate where the solder balls are to be provided at a subsequent step,
photolithographically opening the etch-resistant layer and producing cavities which extend through the silicon carrier substrate,
removing the etch-resistant layer, and
applying an insulation layer at least to the side walls of the cavities.
The etch-resistant layer is advantageously formed of silicon nitrite (Si3N4). Furthermore, it is advantageous for the etch-resistant layer to be applied to both sides of the silicon carrier substrate, and for the cavities which extend through the silicon carrier substrate to be produced by etching until the etch-resistant layer is reached.
The photolithographic opening or structuring of the etch-resistant layer then takes place on that side of the silicon carrier substrate which is remote from the side on which the semiconductor chips are to be applied. The cavities (vertical connections) may be produced, for example, by using a hot caustic potash solution (KOH) until the etch-resistant layer which is on that side of the carrier substrate to which the semiconductor chips are subsequently applied is reached.
The etch-resistant layer may, for example, be removed by using hot phosphoric acid, so that the silicon carrier substrate then has the cavities at the desired locations. The cavities may have inclined flanks or side walls or may have flanks which are at right angles to the main surfaces of the silicon carrier substrate.
Then, the insulating layer is applied to the carrier substrate. According to an advantageous mode of the invention, this is done by dipping the carrier substrate into a material which can be liquefied and hardened. The material is, for example, a ceramic glaze or an epoxy resin. The material which can be liquefied and hardened must have properties such that the viscosity and therefore the layer thickness can be adjusted in such a manner that the holes made in the carrier substrate are not closed again. The hardening of the material can be achieved, for example, by vitrification using a high-temperature process.
In a first mode of the invention, the step of applying the multilayer wiring includes the following steps:
applying a film or foil to the silicon carrier substrate,
producing the multilayer wiring, beginning with a metallization, and
removing, from the side where the solder balls are to be provided, the film or foil at the locations of the soldering contacts.
The film or foil is applied to that side of the carrier substrate on which the multilayer wiring is provided. The film should be as thin as possible but should be applied in such a manner that it does not xe2x80x9csagxe2x80x9d at the locations where the cavities in the carrier substrate are to be found. The multilayer wiring is applied to the film. The metallization, which is connected to the film, must be suitable to form a good mechanical and electrical connection to the solder balls which are subsequently applied. The film can be removed at the locations of the soldering contacts, for example by etching or using an organic solution from that side of the silicon carrier material which is remote from the multilayer wiring. However, the etchant or the solvent must only act on the film or foil, but not on the insulating layer (e.g. ceramic glaze or epoxy resin) which was applied in an earlier step.
According to an alternative mode of the invention, the step of applying the multilayer wiring includes the following steps:
producing the multilayer wiring on an auxiliary substrate,
connecting the multilayer wiring to the silicon carrier substrate, and
removing the auxiliary substrate.
Advantageously, an auxiliary layer is provided between the multilayer wiring and the auxiliary substrate. The auxiliary layer is removed after the multilayer wiring has been connected to the silicon carrier substrate. For this purpose, the auxiliary layer is advantageously formed of a thermally stable plastic which can be dissolved under the action of a solvent. The plastic must be able to withstand the thermal conditions involved in all method steps associated with the multilayer wiring without being damaged. It should dissolve under the action of a solvent, while the multilayer wiring must not be affected by the solvent. Only by dissolving the auxiliary layer can the auxiliary substrate then be detached from the multilayer wiring of the semiconductor component.
Other features which are considered as characteristic for the invention are set forth in the appended claims.
Although the invention is illustrated and described herein as embodied in a method for producing a semiconductor component with a silicon carrier substrate, it is nevertheless not intended to be limited to the details shown, since various modifications and structural changes may be made therein without departing from the spirit of the invention and within the scope and range of equivalents of the claims.
The construction and method of operation of the invention, however, together with additional objects and advantages thereof will be best understood from the following description of specific embodiments when read in connection with the accompanying drawings.